“These are the facts: people started dying at increased rates after 2008,” Dr. Tapper told the NYTimes. “Young people are more likely to die of alcoholic cirrhosis, and we know that there is a model of despair in young unemployed men who are likely to abuse alcohol.” (my italics and boldface)

While Dr. Tapper sees a correlation with the recession of 2008-2010 and the rise, he is unsure of the cause.

We got one cause. To be clear, this is not the only cause; but among smart young men, the cause is being denied college entrance and graduation. Schools and colleges have taken away one's life's work from around 14 million smart males since 1980, and when they take away your life's passion, a good job, and the ability to find a likewise smart mate - - you get depression. This is not speculation. Julie and I are surrounded by depressed smart (really smart) young men. We see, and deal with it, daily.

Photo: Monarch butterfly, threatened just a few years ago, seems to be making a comeback since a bunch of us planted milkweed plants in our backyards; and we see milkweed plants along the highways now too. Maybe a success story, maybe.